This evidence supports the form over function argument: one can only conclude Apple sassily put the charge port on the bottom to make it impossible even to think of using the mouse while a cord is attached.
I think the main argument against this is the risk of running out of battery while you are using the computer. Forcing the user to stop using the mouse to charge is not very great.
That being said, I think Apple's (or Ive's) justification for the port on the bottom would come from the design issues with a front-facing port (asymmetry), and I guess for them the trade-off is worth it. It probably is for me, too.
I saw an article where someone rigged the magic mouse so that the cord was not on the bottom. They found that the mouse was unable to be used while charging. So putting the charge port on the bottom may have been driven by larger design decisions that made use while charging not possible.
So your argument against the bottom charger beign bad design is that the mouse is also designed so it can’t charge and operate (contrary to the keyboard for example)? That’s kind of circular :)
Same the applies to the complaints about the mouse. It was designed with the charger port on the bottom specifically for 2 reasons: 1) to keep the design aesthetic as similar to the original Magic Mouse as possible and 2) to prevent people from leaving it plugged in all the time while they're using it thereby defeating the purpose of a wireless mouse.
Things seem terrible until you take an open-minded look at the priorities of the design. What might seem stupid at first might actually have a well-thought out background.
Apple’s own wireless trackpad and wireless keyboards work while being plugged in.
I think the sleek visual and ergonomic design specifically resulted in the charge port being put on the bottom, which resulted in their decision to disable the mouse when it’s charging. Not the other way around.
Is that not by design? Apple doesn't want the user to plug in the mouse to charge, forget to unplug it, and use it like a wired mouse. They therefore force the user through its design to literally be unable to use it that way. In my view that's good design, as it follows the goals of the designer. If one contends that design should follow the goals of the user, well, there are always other mice one can use.
For what it's worth, I don't think Steve Jobs would have ever allowed the charging port for the Magic Mouse to ever be on the bottom and forced the user to have to leave the mouse on it's side to charge.
You might be willing to give them a mulligan on their recent design choices, but I'm not. Apple has historically had smart, sensible designs -- even Apple haters can't deny that.
The amount of time required to charge doesn't change the fact that no reasonable person would consider the pencil or the mouse charging method a good design.
>> Same thing for Magic Mouse. You think you can design it better? You have a better place for that port?
Well, there are already mice with charging ports where a cord would normally go. It's a solved problem.
Not that I necessarily agree, but I've heard that Apple intentionally designed it that way because they didn't want users to plug the cord in all the time and effectively make it a wired mouse. They wanted users to actually use the mouse wirelessly as intended.
That certainly seems like a more logical explanation than literally no one at Apple anticipating such an obvious design consequence for a major accessory.
The Magic Mouse charge port is deliberate. Apple knows that people would leave the cable connected if it were placed at the edge. that would undermine the wireless aesthetic.
Those rationales don't make much sense to me since they seem like they'd be equally applicable to the keyboard and trackpad.
Every design is about tradeoffs. In this case, the mouse would have to have a somewhat different shape to accommodate a port at the front. That different shape would surely be a poorer fit for the visual aesthetic they were going for and it likely would've impacted the feel during usage, as well.
Some people would prefer that tradeoff — certainly those who would prefer to (or have to because of an RF-noisy environment) use the mouse wired all the time. I expect the vast majority of their customers don't do that, though; and, I, for one, prefer (or at least am neutral to) the choice they went with.
It definitely makes for a silly-looking photo while it's charging, but it's certainly not a blunder that none of the designers ever considered.
I feel like this is on purpose. How could it be a mistake, Apple has legendary design sense? I think it's to discourage people from using the mouse while its charging, and thus undermining what distinguishes the product. Regardless of the truth, I find it to be unfriendly to the consumer.
I love a lot of Apple’s design, but there is one particular example that frustrates me often: the mouse that comes with the iMac Pro. It perfectly illustrates Jobs’ mantra that design isn’t just about looks.
The problem is that in order to produce the beautiful silhouette, they put the charging port on the bottom. I never seem to remember to charge the thing, so it’s always needing to be plugged-in. And then you can’t use.
What I find bonkers about this is that mice were wired for the majority of their existence, so it’s not like this was a hard one to figure out. They just chose to go with what looked nice.
For a company as obsessed with design as Apple, it's a bad design. A mouse sitting upside-down, or on its side, on a desk is not exactly elegant. Even if it's just for a short period of time every 3 months, it's still an ugly solution. It's on par with the Apple Pencil that charged in the bottom of the iPad.
A MagSafe connection to the front of the mouse seems like it would be much better.
I have an old AA version of the Magic Mouse, I'd much rather use that over the current Magic Mouse, though I currently use a Logitech. If they ever move the charging port off the bottom, I might give the Apple mouse another look.
I think you must be exaggerating a little bit, because if true then it doesn't really matter if the charging port is on the bottom. You need a corded mouse. Apple doesn't make any, but I've yet to see any 3rd party USB mouse that a Mac won't work fine with. I've got a Logitech connected to a USB-C dongle for the infrequent times that I want a mouse on my MBP. Mouse+Dongle is also cheaper than a Magic Mouse.
I assumed they put the port on the bottom quite intentionally to prevent you from using the mouse with a cord/tail, you know, like it'd be gauche to go to a nice steakhouse and order a well done steak and request high-fructose corn syrup sauce to slather across it. Seems in character for Apple.
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